Fersiwn Gymraeg ar gael yma.
Keen to improve the biodiversity around their site, the National Assembly for Wales recently signed up to work with RSPB Cymru and Buglife Cymru to make their Cardiff Bay estate an Urban Buzz site.
The Assembly had made some steps in the past, including a couple of bug hotels, a garden strip and some fruit trees in the car park. The Pierhead Bees project, launched in 2018 though, acted as a catalyst for further improvements. Having bee hives installed on the Pierhead raised the awareness of pollinators and the need to improve their habitats.
Despite being in an urban location, and with limited space on the estate, the Assembly have begun to improve what areas they can. Staff volunteers have started planting more pollinator-friendly plants around the site and continue to meet up regularly for maintenance sessions.
Arranged via an internal Yammer group, the team are using the gardening and biodiversity activities to learn more about caring for plants, as well as what creatures they may be able to provide a home for in their own gardens. The gardening is not only bringing together staff from different parts of the Assembly operation, but also supporting health and wellbeing in the workplace.
The next steps will include surveying the insect life appearing on the site; to assess the effectiveness of improvements over time. The team are looking forward to seeing how their efforts have made a difference to plant and animal life on even a small patch of land.
For more information, you can email us at RSPB Cymru on GNaHCardiff@rspb.org.uk, or for more information about the Urban Buzz site at the Assembly, get in touch with sustainability@assembly.wales